Getting Along
by rnovak
Summary: Elliot and Casey have to look out for each other when they find themselves in a complicated situation. When they have difficulties closing a particular case will they find a way to un-complicate things in order to arrest a perp and potentially find love? E/C *please read and review
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I write for myself and not for anyone else. It's just kinda cool to get positive reviews, I always appreciate it *hinthint :)

*Disclaimer: The follow material is used for entertainment purposes only; _rnovak_ does not own any of the recognized characters or other associations. All rights are reserved to the original creator and network.

"Elliot that is the stupidest idea I have ever heard!-Even from you! We're trying to nail the bastard not play house with him!" ADA Casey Novak yelled across the room at Detective Elliot Stabler, while several other members of the squad stood by watching the encounter.

"Listen Novak, I don't go around telling you how to prosecute so don't you dare try stand there and try to tell me how to do my job! Going undercover is the best and might I add only option here. We have to get this guy." Elliot replied glaring at the blond ADA in front of him.

"That's where you're wrong again Stabler, it's my job to get involved when it jeopardizes the outcome of_ my_ case. I'm sorry that I don't want to risk sending the guy with the flaming temper into a fragile environment in which we would need to be able to completely control if we sent you undercover. If you guys do this and you all screw it up, you might as well let him walk free now!" Casey countered, her arms flailing about in frustration.

Elliot ignored Casey, turning to face Captain Cragen "Captain would you please tell the assistant district attorney that she does not have jurisdiction or the authority to instruct the NYPD how to do their damn jobs. This is my case, I've been tailing this guy for the past week and I'm telling you captain we are not going to get him any other way. Maybe our esteemed prosecutor has forgotten, but we actually need evidence to get a jury to convict and that's not going to happen unless we go undercover".

"Come on Donald you know-" Casey was interrupted by Donald Cragen's booming voice.

"ENOUGH! Both of you. You are acting completely unprofessional, you forget you're not the only two that want to get this guy. We all want him behind bars in the rest of his life and we are not going to do that by standing here listen to the two of you argue like children!" Cragen all but screamed in the middle of the precinct. "Anyone involved in the Daniels case- my office NOW, everyone else back to work while you still have your jobs!"

Casey marched in Cragen's office followed closely by Elliot, Fin and Munch. Casey had been the only female left in their unit with the exception of ME Warner since Olivia had opted to stay working for the FBI in Oregon; and seeing as Elliot's replacement partner Dani Beck didn't work out, Cragen had decided to let Elliot work solo for the time being. Cragen slammed his office door shut behind them.

"Alright, _children_ what are we going to do about this?" Donald asked, fed up with the antics that were just pulled in front of him; from the lead detective and the top ADA in the district no less.

"We need to go undercover to get this guy. He's sneaky and too careful, we'll never get the evidence we need from the outside cap. He has too much a specific type for us to get him dressed as cops. We know that he goes attractive blonde women in clubs who are always accompanied by their significant other, he likes a challenge so lets give him one; we need to send people in to bait him." Elliot explained.

"Captain, that's absurd why would we risk blowing the entire case, when if we wait a little bit longer we can get him by the book. You'll risk losing any evidence you find anyways because of they way you obtain it" Casey argued.

Cragen thought about what was being said "Well do you have a better idea counselor?"

Casey just looked at the ground "If we just wait-"

"Casey another victim doesn't have the time to wait!" Elliot screamed.

Cragen held up his hand, cautioning the detective to calm down. "Casey I have to agree with Elliot here, I don't think it's wise to try and do this from the outside, I think we'll just be wasting time". Casey rolled her eyes, sitting down in a chair. "Fin, Munch what do you two think? You two have been awfully quiet" Cragen said motioning towards the two detectives who were standing in by the door.

"Sorry Casey, but I think I have to go with Elliot here, it doesn't make sense to wait any longer if we're not going to get anywhere sitting around" Fin said apologetically to the ADA.

"Yeah cap, let's do it" Munch agreed.

"Perfect we're all on board" Cragen said, ignoring Casey's pout "The only problem is we don't have any blond female detectives or at least any that would work with Elliot to go in to play our couple and we certainly can't dress Munch or Fin up to look like a believable woman, let alone a particularly attractive one.

"Hell no" Fin agreed at Captain Cragen's assumption.

The detectives paused momentarily stumped at the problem that had arisen in their plan. "Cap, we may not have any female _detectives_ but…." Munch began. Fin, Elliot and Cragen all caught on to what Munch was getting at and suddenly four pairs of eyes fell onto one Casey Novak.

Casey realized what the others were thinking and looked up at them as if they all had three heads. "Ohhh no! I want no part in this gong show that you all intend on running! Even if I _were_ to agree to this, I have no idea what I'm doing, I've barely even spent any time inside of a club" Casey protested.

"Casey, c'mon don't you wanna catch the bastard?" Elliot reasoned as the other detectives sent very pleading looks in Casey's direction.

"Ugh, FINE! Just tell me what I have to do so that I'm not the one who screws it up" Casey finally reluctantly agreed.

The detectives smiled, feeling pleased with themselves before the captain burst their bubble "Wait just a minute!" Cragen interrupted "The two of you can't even go ten minutes without wanting to rip each other's throats out. What makes me think that you can _believably_ play a _happy_ couple? And how do I know that you'll look out for her Elliot and not throw her to the wolves that will undoubtedly be gawking at her" he asked, raising his eyebrows in question.

"We'll get him cap. We'll get along" Elliot said reassuring the captain's doubt. Turning to Casey, he looked the blond ADA right in the eyes and said "And Casey, I promise I won't let anything happen to you. Trust me."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Is anyone reading this story? Where are all me E/C fans?! As always reviews are very much appreciated! So please, please, please review!

Casey had spent the rest of the day in search of an outfit to wear undercover. She didn't own anything that would even merit a double take from anybody and they needed their perp to notice her. She tried on several different types of tight, short and revealing numbers, blushing each time she looked at her own reflection in the mirror, there was no way she could pull of a look like this, Casey had always thought she looked like the "girl next door" and that was definitely not what this guy was attracted to. Casey sighed as she struggled out of a small green dress, she didn't even put this much effort into her appearance when she went out on real dates; not that she had many of those either. No matter how cute or smart or funny her date was, something was always holding her back and for the life of her she couldn't put her finger on it. Leaving the dress in the fitting room Casey left yet another store empty handed. She wasn't exactly picky about what she wanted to wear, after all it wouldn't really be "her" wearing it but she did want it to be at least somewhat tasteful and she was having a difficult time finding something that fit the profile while leaving _something_ to the imagination. Casey walked around beginning to feel defeated when she walked by a store that apparently called themselves "I See You Looking At Me". Casey laughed to herself at the ridiculous title until _it_ caught her eye; a dress that was hanging on the window display wouldn't normally have been something that the prosecutor would've gone for but something about this dress just drew the ADA to it. Walking hesitantly into the store Casey found her size in the dress and without even bothering to try it on, she headed for the cashier and swiped her Amex. About an hour later, Casey had also bought a new pair of shoes to go with the dress she had just purchased and was now on her way back to the precinct to get a quick briefing. As she walked in through the doors, clutching her purchases in hand, she was surprised to find that the detectives and captain were already gathered around Elliot's desk seemingly waiting for her.

"Nice of you to show up counselor. It's not like we have a killer to catch or anything, so by all means why shouldn't you go on a shopping spree in the middle of the day" Elliot sarcastically gesturing at the bags in her hand.

"For your information _detective_, I needed something to wear for your ludacris undercover operation. I- er, didn't have anything um, fitting for the occasion" Casey said blushing slightly as she remembered all of the tiny numbers she had tried on earlier.

Sensing Casey's sudden discomfort, Elliot decided to drop the topic. "Anyways, so when we get to the club tonight-"

"Wait, TONIGHT?" Casey interrupted, somewhat shocking that it would be so soon.

"Yes Novak, tonight. The sooner we collar him the better. Is that a problem?" Captain Cragen asked getting frustrated.

"No it's um, fine" Casey said sitting down in an empty chair next to Munch. Cragen continued the briefing, letting them know what to look for when searching for the perp and so on. It was established that Fin would be sitting at a table in the club, as backup while Munch would stick with Cragen on standby.

Casey who had been sitting quietly this whole time was getting increasingly anxious. She wasn't sure what to expect and even thought Elliot had promised not to let anything happen to her, they hadn't exactly been on the same wavelength lately. She knew he was having a hard time since his divorce, but in the past few weeks she and Elliot had been at each other's throats over every little thing. Would he able to put it all aside for the night to make sure that nothing would happen to her? Not that she couldn't take care of herself, it was just that Casey had never been in this type of situation and it was made her nervous thinking about everything that could go wrong.

Elliot had been watching her across the room while Cragen spoke, he noticed that she had been fidgeting with the hem of her shirt the entire time. In the three years that Elliot had known Casey Novak he had never seen her _nervous_, even before a big trial, he had never seen this side of the confident counselor. Elliot suddenly felt his stomach turn as he wondered whether they were doing the right thing, making Casey do something she wasn't comfortable doing. But they had no other option, she was exactly the perp's type and even though they were going to use her to bait him, Elliot swore to himself that he wouldn't let anything happen to her.

"Alright kids, as long as we execute the plan properly it looks like we'll be walking out tonight with this guy in cuffs" Cragen said "Elliot, I'll send a car to your place before heading over to Casey's around 9. Be ready please. This has to go off without a hitch, he can't know we're in there got it?"

"Yeah captain, we know" Elliot answered taking his coat off of the back of his chair and putting it on "Come on Case, I'll give you a ride home" he offered as he lead the way to out to his car.

Elliot was driving Casey back to her apartment when Casey broke the silence "Elliot, just because I think this is stupid idea, it doesn't mean I'm not going to try my absolute best to get this guy. But I'm going to need help; I'm a prosecutor, I've never been undercover before". Casey said, sounding more vulnerable than she meant to.

"Casey, first of all, it's not a stupid idea and second of all, I've got your back. I won't let anything happen to you okay?" Elliot reassured her.

"Okay" Casey answered simply.

When they had reached Casey's building and the car slowed to a stop. Casey surprised Elliot when she leaned across the shift gear and placed her lips on his, kissing him lightly. Stunned Elliot just looked at her a little confused.

Casey grinned "Elliot, if our "first kiss" is while we're undercover, potentially in front of the perp, we won't be believable as a couple" Casey explained "and I thought you were the detective" Casey finished as she got out of the car and winked at Elliot before entering walking through a revolving door, leaving Elliot still in shock.

Back in the car, Elliot was still stunned, not at the assistant district attorney's actions, she was right, they had to pretend they were together, at least for the night. Instead what surprised Elliot was just how much he had enjoyed the feeling of Casey's lips touching his. Elliot stayed in the car for another minute, debating whether or not to go in after her. After thinking about it, Elliot drove away, the sweet taste of Casey Novak still lingering on his lips.


	3. Chapter 3

About a half-hour later, Casey stepped out of her shower feeling refreshed as she wrapped her strawberry blonde hair in a towel, which she twirled up to rest on her head. Wrapping another towel securely around her body, Casey made her way to her bedroom where she plopped down on her bed before turning to her head to get a glimpse of her bedside clock. 7:03 it read, meaning she had less than two hours to get dressed before Elliot would be here. Laying back down, Casey closed her eyes trying not to think about all the dangers that could arise tonight. Nervously chewing the inside of her cheek, Casey admitted to herself that she was scared. Casey Novak, senior assistant district attorney was _scared _of going to a club, in all fairness it wasn't exactly the idea of being in a club that scared her to her core. It was more the idea of being hurt by the perp… again. Casey shuddered as she remembered what had happened to her during the case she had tried involving an Islamic woman last year. Turning over onto her side, Casey wondered if she was the right person to do this tonight, albeit she was the _only_ person who could do it, but all the same she didn't think was strong enough to pull it off. Casey knew that Elliot had promised to protect her but so much could happen tonight that even the all mighty Elliot Stabler couldn't foresee. What if he got hurt tonight? Again Casey felt her body shudder at the thought. _'No that won't happen'_ Casey told herself firmly '_Elliot is too strong and smart and way too damn good at his job to let anyone hurt him… or her'_ she thought to herself. Thinking about Elliot like that made her smile slightly as she thought about how she had caught him off guard with that kiss earlier. It wasn't something she had exactly planned on doing; but in the moment it just felt… right. And hey, it was better than bickering with the guy like they had been the majority of the day; actually it was _a lot_ better. Casey had been surprised by how soft Elliot's lips had felt against hers. She had told Elliot that she didn't want their quote unquote first kiss to be so awkward that it wouldn't be believable to the perp; but as Casey got out of bed to start getting dressed she couldn't help but hope there would be a _next _kiss as well.

Meanwhile in Queens, Elliot was standing half naked staring at his closet with a confused expression on his face. He couldn't decide what coloured shirt he wanted to wear on top of his dark washed jeans, but more than that he couldn't figure out why he cared. He had been undercover plenty of times before and never once did he even think twice about his attire, so why was this time so different? Subconsciously Elliot silently wondered whether it was because he wanted to impress one Miss Casey Novak tonight. Shaking his head at his own thoughts Elliot decided on a plain black shirt. Throwing it on, Elliot buttoned it up as he told himself that whatever was going to happen tonight, was just an act. He couldn't be distracted by his personal feelings for Casey that may or may not be there, they had to catch this killer and that was the priority, for tonight at least. Glancing down at his watch Elliot had a few minutes to spare before the car service would be at his house. He sat on the edge of bed still feeling confused, just this morning he had been ready to wring Casey's neck out, what had changed now? Now when he thought of Casey, he had to fight himself just to keep his heart from racing. Sure that kiss had been.. something else, but it was more than that. It was the sense of vulnerability that Elliot had heard in his voice that made her seem so human, it was the look in her eyes that told him that she trusted him to keep her safe, it was the way that he felt his heart suddenly stop when he thought about how he would feel if something were to go wrong tonight. Elliot thought he was going out of his mind, there was no way anything could ever happen between him and the ADA, as far as he was concerned she hated his guts. Although, when she had kissed him, Elliot had sworn that he felt something more than just what she was letting on. Was there even the slightest possibility that she could feel the same way? Suddenly all these feelings were arising within him and they were all over Casey, but the sound of his own doorbell made him jump causing him to forget about his feelings… it was time to catch a killer.

Casey was just finishing applying a coat of lip-gloss when she heard a knock on her door. Trying not to trip over herself in her new shoes, Casey made her way to the door, looking through the peephole first, just to make sure it was Elliot. As she opened the door, she was surprised when he didn't have a sarcastic opinion or a smug comment to make on the how much effort Casey had put into her appearance for once, instead she was met with a very stunned Elliot Stabler at her doorway.

Elliot caught his breath as he felt his jaw drop a few inches staring at the woman in front of his eyes. Elliot allowed his eyes to wander over her; he ha always known that Casey was a beautiful woman but he had never seen her quite like this before. She was wearing a tight plum coloured dress that hugged her body perfectly, ending right in the middle of her thigh. The colour of the dress contrasted her fair skin tone, as Elliot noticed that a piece of the dress was cutout right underneath her chest in the shape of a triangle. Elliot remembered seeing these types of "cutout" dresses in the magazines his daughter read. None of them did justice to the one Casey was wearing right now. He had thought that she seemed a little bit taller and as he looked down at her feet he realized it was because she was wearing a pair of strappy black stilettoes, or whatever those things were called. Her blonde hair fell into loose curls that nearly covered the thin straps of her dress. Her long eyelashes that had been curled up, exenterating her piercing green eyes and Elliot thought his heart stopped as he stared into her eyes. The sound of Casey's voice brought him back "What wrong Elliot? Do I not look okay? I can go change. You don't think the perp will be attracted to me?" Casey asked innocently looking down at her outfit feeling very self-conscious.

Elliot gulped before opening his mouth to protest. Grabbing her hand before she could turn around Elliot looked at her again before speaking "Casey, every man in New York is going to be attracted to you, how could they not be" Elliot said as he watched her blush "Unless of course they're gay, but even then you have a shot" he continued lightening the mood and causing her to laugh. Elliot looked down to make sure he was still holding her hand, a hand he had no intention of letting go of the entire night. "Now come on, let's go show the captain we can get a long for more than two minutes" he said with a wink as he escorted he gorgeous woman he was holding out to their waiting car.


	4. Chapter 4

Elliot and Casey were sitting quietly in the back of the car as Munch drove them to the club. Elliot found himself fidgeting with the collar of his shirt, just to stop himself from reaching over and taking Casey into his arms. She was wearing a very sweet smelling perfume that made her all that more irresistible. Elliot thought his heart had stopped when she wrapped her arms around his neck to fix the collar of his shirt he had been fiddling with "Here, let me get that" Casey said, clearing not knowing what her closeness was doing to him. Munch smiled at the sight in his rear-view mirror, those two had it bad for each other. As Munch slowed the car to a stop right outside the club, Casey and Elliot took a deep breath from the backseat; they could already hear the steady beat of the blaring music. Elliot slid out of the car first and held out his hand for Casey, which she took almost immediately. Elliot closed the car door before they slowly stepped foot into the busy club… and so it began. They made their way through a crowd of people and Casey tightened her grip on Elliot's hand, Elliot gave her a reassuring nod as they reached the bar and sat side by side of a couple of cushioned stools. Casey ordered a couple of club sodas as Elliot looked around taking in the scene. Across the club, he could barely make out Fin sitting on some couches chatting up a couple of girls while keeping his eye on Elliot and Casey. Elliot turned his attention back to Casey, she was now standing up still facing towards the bar, waiting for their drinks. Elliot felt his jaw tense as he began to notice that true to his prediction, every man in the club was eyeing Casey like a piece of meat, staring at her backside as they walked by. Elliot put a protective hand on the small of Casey's back, causing Casey to spin around nearly spilling their drinks in the process. "Is he here?" she asked anxiously.

"I don't know, don't worry he'll be here, trust me" Elliot said, leaning towards her he whispered "Every man wants to be next to you tonight", he said before pulling her close to him and kissing her cheek. For a moment Casey almost forgot they were undercover; Elliot's gesture had surprised her but then she remembered that they were _supposed _to be affectionate towards one another. Staring into his blue eyes, Casey moved her hands to his face before kissing him passionately. Forgetting all about where they were, Casey knew she wasn't acting or putting on a show for the perp, she kissed Elliot because she had wanted to and as soon as her lips met his, she knew that's all she wanted to do for the rest of the night. Reluctantly pulling back, Elliot looked over Casey's shoulder "I think we got someone's attention" he said urging her not to turn around just yet. Sitting back in their seats, they nursed their drinks, making casual conversation while Elliot kept one eye on the guy behind Casey. Reaching into her clutch to get some money to pay for the drinks, she was suddenly stopped when someone's hand covered her own, and that hand was not Elliot's. Looking up from her lap, she was met by a rather attractive, tall and muscular man who was smiling widely at her, still not removing his hand from hers "Let me get that for you babe, since your boyfriend over here is clearly not going to" he said nodding in Elliot's direction as he reached into his own pocket for a few bills. Elliot hadn't even noticed that Casey was trying to pay for the drinks, otherwise he would've absolutely stopped her himself. Facing the man, who was trying to show him up, Elliot studied him for a moment, before realizing that he was the perp. Men had been eyeing and making short passes at Casey since they had gotten here, but this guy was the first to actually make a move on her, while she was clearly in the presence of company; it was his exact MO, he would woo the women and make their significant other feel inferior then as they were leaving the club he would lure the woman away where he would rape and kill them. Elliot moved closer to Casey, every muscle in his body tightening at the thought of this guy laying one more hand on her. This guy was completely ignoring Elliot as he continued to try and make conversation with Casey, "I'm Brock by the way and what would your beautiful name-" he was cut off by Elliot.

"What kind of name is _Brock_?" Elliot scoffed "And for your information, her _boyfriend_ was actually about to pay the bill so if you wouldn't mind leaving us alone now thanks" Elliot said as he pulled Casey onto the middle of the dance floor, leaving Brock staring at Casey as they walked away.

As they found some room among the crowd of people Casey leaned towards Elliot "What are you doing? We had him? Why didn't you collar him" Casey asked sounding very frustrated.

Laughing at Casey's eagerness to get out of the club, Elliot pulled her in, "Because Case, he hasn't actually done anything yet, but he'll keep trying I can still see him eyeing you from here. If I arrested anyone that tried to make a move on you, there wouldn't be any men left in the city" Elliot said jokingly. The music slowed down to a very seductive pace as some Spanish song blared through the speakers. Elliot placed his hands gently on Casey's hips, pulling her close to his body as Casey wrapped her arms around his neck. They quickly found their own pace as their legs became intertwined, with Casey's thigh resting in-between Elliot's. Their hips rocked back and forth with their bodies sweating and pressing against one another's. Elliot felt his pants growing tighter as Casey threw her head back revealing her bare neck and the top of her chest. The pair continued to dance in the crowd as their heart rate picked up. Casey bit down on her lower lip nervously; being so close to Elliot was intoxicating, and she wanted more. Elliot stared at her lips before leaning down and crashing his lips into hers, licking the bottom of her lips Casey eagerly opened her mouth deepening the kiss.

From across the club, Brock watched in disgust as the two of them made out in the middle of the dance floor. He didn't deserve her, he wasn't good enough for her. Brock tightened his fists as he pushed through people to get closer to the woman he'd been staring at all night. Seeing this out of the corner of his eye, Elliot instantly dropped his hands, grabbing Casey's as he lead them towards the door. Startled Casey asked "What's going on?" slightly out of breath. Elliot noticed Fin get up and run down the stairs before he said "He's following us, he's going to separate us, go with him and I _promise you_ I will get to you before anything happens you to".

Casey gulped, "Okay". They had just reached the car when Brock came out running after them.

"Excuse me folks" he cried as he neared them "The lovely lady has won a special prize of the night, she needs to come collect it before they give it away to someone else" he eyes Casey hungrily "And I won't dream of it going to anyone else".

Humoring him, Elliot played along "Oh I don't know, it's getting late we should just go".

"Don't be silly babe I want my prize, you wait here I'll be right back" Casey said without a single hitch in her voice. Elliot wasn't sure why her confidence surprised him, she was after all ADA Novak. He watched as Brock led Casey around the corner and back to the club, as soon as they were out of sight, he grabbed him badge and gun from inside the car and ran after them, Munch following closely behind him. They met up with Fin who was running towards them from the opposite direction "Which way did they go?" Elliot asked in a huff, he had lost sight of them. A scream from a nearby alley got their attention as the three detective sprinted towards the sound. Elliot said a silent prayer that the scumbag hadn't hurt Casey and as they rounded the corner, all three detectives stopped in their tracks.

Casey was standing over Brock, who was lying on the ground seemingly unconscious. Her left cheek was red but other than that she seemed okay. She was shaking off her right hand that seemed to have a small amount of blood on it. Waving her good hand in the air at the three detectives who were just standing there she yelled "Helloooo? Are you boys going to collar the bastard or do I have to do that too?!" she said sarcastically as she gestured over at the man lying down who was now beginning to stir, waking up. Fin and Munch quickly ran over there, placing the cuffs on him while Fin Mirandized him. Now fully conscious Brock turned to Casey "You BITCH!" he screamed as Munch and Finn dragged him to the car. Casey stood there, more than satisfied with the evidence they had obtained. Elliot ran over to Casey taking off his jacket and draping it over her shoulders. "Case, what happened?" he asked.

"As soon as we were out of sight he dragged me into this alley and pushed me up against the brick wall" she paused showing Elliot the scratch she had on her wrist from his fingernails and a couple scrapes she had on her legs from the brick wall " he slapped me then he started pulling my dress up and well… that's when I slugged him. Don't worry I have more than enough evidence to convict the bastard at trial" Casey said nonchalantly .

Elliot pulled Casey into a tight hug "Casey I'm so sorry I was supposed to protect you" Elliot said as a tear slipped from his eye.

"El, I'm fine don't worry about it. You guys got here just before he would wake up, you did protect me" Casey said taking Elliot's hands in hers.

Elliot stared at Casey amazed by how strong and beautiful she was. Placing a hand on her soft skin, he lightly fingered over her red cheek. He tucked a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear before slowly leaning in to kiss her.

Casey basked in the gentleness of Elliot's touch before pulling back blushing "Elliot, we got the guy you don't have to pretend anymore" she said with a sense of vulnerability in her voice.

Elliot simply stared into her piercing green eyes, "I was never pretending" he said quietly before pulling her back into him and kissing her with everything in him. Casey wrapped her arms around Elliot as he picked her up and carried her to the car.

"Hey Elliot, I think the captain will be happy. I'd say we got along just fine" Casey said with a wink as she leaned down to kiss him one again.

A/N: Thanks for reading! I loved writing this story! Reviews are much appreciated! Cheers!


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